6 car companies that failed

The history of automotive startups is littered with the carcasses of companies that never achieved high production with mainstream success.

Fisker Automotive ran into production problems during development of the Karma plug-in hybrid sedan. The automaker then missed development and sales benchmarks required to secure more government funding, leading to a downward spiral of layoffs, default on government loans and eventually bankruptcy. Fisker's founder, Henrik Fisker, parted ways with the company last year.

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Fewer investors have been looking to fund green vehicles in recent years. One victim of this trend was Aptera Motors, a now-defunct California electric vehicle maker. Aptera couldn't secure private-sector funding -- or a federal loan -- for production of its futuristic mid-sized sedan. Key assets of Aptera were sold in 2012 to Jonway Group, a Chinese auto and motorcycle producer.Above: Aptera Motors' team. Credit: PETER BROWN

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Coda Holdings Inc. was another recent green-car startup that filed for bankruptcy protection last year. The company sold only 100 units of its only offering, the Coda electric sedan. Above: Former Coda CEO Phil Murtaugh

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Norwegian EV maker Think Global had numerous financial problems over its 20-year history before closing three years ago. Having survived the financial collapse of 2008 by finding new investors and restarting production of its lone model, the Think City minicar, the automaker failed to reach consumers. In 2010, its last full sales year, the company sold just 1,043 units of the City. Since then, Russian businessman Boris Zingarevich has bought Think's assets with the possibility of relaunching under a new company dubbed Electric Mobility Solutions AS.

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Preston Tucker was a notable postwar automotive entrepreneur of the 1940s. Automotive News' Richard Truett said the 1948 Tucker sedan was ahead of its time for including safety features such as “a shatterproof, pop-out windshield; a carpeted 'safety chamber' under the instrument panel on the front passenger side where an occupant could be protected in an accident; and a center-mounted headlight that turned with the steering wheel.” Despite this, Tucker produced 51 units before the company folded, and his tale is often offered as a cautionary lesson for modern-day startups.Above: Illustration from patent application for Tucker '48 sedan. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

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The automaker that produced the stainless steel car that rose to fame in the Back to the Future trilogy never achieved mainstream success, but the story of the company and its founder, John DeLorean, lives on. DeLorean, a former General Motors executive, left the automaker to create a sports car manufactured in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The announcement of the company's bankruptcy after seven years was the stuff of legend, coming a week after DeLorean was arrested in Los Angeles on drug trafficking charges. He was acquitted of the charges, but was unable to get another car company started.Above: John DeLorean, credit: JOE WILSSENS

Tesla CEO Elon Musk would do well to look for lessons from the six notable failures highlighted here.

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